SMEARING OF TROY TO BEGIN?

Posted by Mike Florio on January 28, 2009, 8:11 AM EDT

Now that the race to succeed Gene Upshaw as Executive Director of the NFLPA has been narrowed to five horses, there’s a consensus that only two of them have a chance at securing the gig.
Former NFLPA president Troy Vincent, and former NFLPA president Trace Armstrong.
Armstrong, as the rumor mill goes, is the preferred choice of current NFLPA interim Executive Director Richard Berthelsen and those aligned with him, including primary outside counsel Jeffrey Kessler. (It doesn’t hurt that Armstrong works at CAA with Tom Condon, Upshaw’s long-time agent.)
And it’s widely believed that the current NFLPA leadership doesn’t want Vincent, given his alleged attempt last March to oust Upshaw — and presumably the rest of the current power structure.
As a result, multiple league insiders and observers expect a smear campaign to be launched against Vincent, in an effort to disqualify him from the process.
One tactic, as we hear it, will be to raise questions about whether Vincent actually received a degree from Wisconsin, presumably because a four-year degree is one of the minimum requirements for the position.
There’s also a belief in some circles that the NFLPA will try to pin on Vincent the interest of Congress in the selection process. We’re told that at least one member of the NFLPA Executive Committee has said that if any candidate were involved in attracting Congressional attention to the search for a new Executive Director, that candidate will be disqualified.
So if the current NFLPA structure can pin any of this on Vincent, then Vincent presumably will be out, and Armstrong will be in.
The best thing Vincent can do, in our view, is be prepared to counter any and all efforts to defeat his chances at securing the job. The stakes are high, arguably higher than in an election.
After all, the President makes only $400,000 per year. Upshaw earned more than 10 times that amount.

And the flipside to this article is Trace Armstrong’s strategy. I think it would behoove him to fake some genuine independence from the current NFLPA power structure and show that if chosen as the next ED, that he won’t be a mere puppet for Berthelsen, Kessler, et al.
Troy Vincent is a smart guy; probably the smartest community organizer in America. He’s not going down without a fight.

I really think the most interesting dynamic to this whole situation isn’t even mentioned:
Elaine likes Vincent’s picks but states “Gene sucks”.
Let’s all keep this in mind while the selection process is taking place.

I’m no fan of Upshaw, the do nothing for a long time NFLPA president, although he was a hero of mine as an O-lineman.
Troy Vincent played football.
Trace Armstrong did interviews after crappy Bears’ losses. And he followed Wanny to Miami where he did more (crappy) interviews.
I liked what I heard of Troy Vincent’s attempts last March. If Upshaw hadn’t croaked we might have had a much different 2009 season.
No one is asking me but I say Troy Vincent is the right man for the job.

“There’s also a belief in some circles that the NFLPA will try to pin on Vincent the interest of Congress in the selection process. We’re told that at least one member of the NFLPA Executive Committee has said that if any candidate were involved in attracting Congressional attention to the search for a new Executive Director, that candidate will be disqualified.”
Who thjnis – and writes – this Russian crap?
The NFLPA is a mob joke opposed by the heroic Troy “Terry Mulloy” Vincent who will come out on top to lend a little common sense and Trade Union virtue to this corrupt, selfish and stupid organization.

“Whoever is picked better put that roger goodell douche in his place and tell him to stop interfering with personal lives.”
BradygothurtLMFAO, now we know your mother didn’t have any children that lived.

what personal lives? these guys are celebrities now. too bad they also arent cerebralties. then they might think before they kill dogs, shoot selves in leg, make it rain, get found with dope in car, assrape coeds…
keep tearing up the turds, roger.

Florio,
I am guessing you must be walking around your house in West Virginia wearing a Go Troy Button. You know very well that the concerns about Troy Vincent run much deeper than just the Wisconsin degree issue or the fact that he was a narc to Congress. He is business partners with known criminals and I am not just referring to Scott Helfand. I hear he has promised positions within the NFLPA to all of his friends and in some cases he’s offered the same position to more than one person. What is worse is that you know the truth about him. Shame on you for continuing to do his biddings. A real journalist would report the truth when he knows it.

“After all, the President makes only $400,000 per year. Upshaw earned more than 10 times that amount.”
That is an obscene amount of money to pay someone on an annual basis for such an insignificant position. CEO’s & Presidents of public companies are in many cases paid less salary than this.
There is no need to pay the NFLPA exec director $4 mil a year.

Florio, keep up the honest journalism. Sunlight is the antithesis of darkness.
Jake Hoyt, tell me a story, not your story, a story. Remember to protect the sheep you gotta catch the wolf, and it takes a wolf to catch a wolf. Hoyt, how many more stories will be created from the 310?
To the 1800 men who play in the National Football League, remember this is your Union. Not the Owners, Not the Media, Not the Staff at the NFLPA-who work for you, THIS IS YOUR UNION! Seize the time, the time is now! Stay Strong, Stay Unified, Stay Tuned…

In March/April 2008 Troy Vincent and others were allegedly accused of trying to overthrow the late Gene Upshaw. NFLPA management could have filed a disciplinary complaint. That did not occur. Vincent and others did not get the opportunity to face their accusers and defend themselves in a hearing. As a result, people who are playing judge, jury and prosecutor have denied Vincent opportunities within the NFLPA and on the Executive Committee. He is also being treated unfairly in the search process.
No matter who it was, it’s not against the law to contact your Congressional representative. But it is against the law to retaliate against anyone who does, especially when it relates to union activity or race relations.

Looks like there is more than smoke here:
Members of the National Football League’s Players Association fret that a leading candidate to replace Gene Upshaw as executive director has a history of failed businesses and questionable personal ties with a felon who stole $150,000 from a former player, The Post has learned.http://www.nypost.com/seven/02102009/business/out_of_bounds_154312.htm